Stevens charges dismissed

From NBC's Domenico MontanaroThe charges against former Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens were dismissed today in federal court. The federal judge in the case also opened a criminal investigation into prosecutors who mishandled the case," AP reports. U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan "appointed attorney Henry Schulke as special prosecutor to investigate the Justice Department team for possible criminal contempt charges."

Sullivan "said he has seen a troubling trend of prosecutors withholding evidence in cases against people ranging from Guantanamo Bay detainees to public officials such as Stevens. He called on judges nationwide to issue formal orders in all criminal cases requiring that prosecutors turn over evidence to defendants. It was a stinging rebuke of the Justice Department and Sullivan called on Holder to order training for all prosecutors."

And get this: "The judge had ordered Justice to provide the agency's internal communications about a whistle-blower complaint brought by an FBI agent involved in the investigation. The agent objected to Justice Department tactics during the trial, including failure to turn over evidence and an "inappropriate relationship" between the lead agent on the case and the prosecution's star witness, Bill Allen."